Obama Orders Feds to Nearly Triple Use of Renewable Energy

CBSNews -- As part of an unfolding administrative effort to curb U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, President Obama announced an executive order on Thursday that would nearly triple the share of energy federal agencies obtain from renewable sources.

CBSNews -- As part of an unfolding administrative effort to curb U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, President Obama announced an executive order on Thursday that would nearly triple the share of energy federal agencies obtain from renewable sources.

To “promote energy security, combat climate change, protect the interests of taxpayers, and safeguard the health of our environment, the federal government must lead by example,” declared a memorandum from the president announcing the order.

The government currently obtains more than 7 percent of its energy from renewable sources, according to a fact sheet distributed by the White House, but the president says recent increases in domestic energy production make a 20 percent target feasible by 2020. The higher target, the White House argued, would “reduce pollution in our communities, promote American energy independence, and support homegrown energy produced by American workers.”

And just on Tuesday, the administration unveiled a plan to help retrofit multifamily housing units and condominiums with energy efficiency upgrades, and it released a 2014 fuel economy guide to promote efficient vehicles among consumers.

Federal agencies have already decreased their carbon emissions by 15 percent since he took office in 2009, the president noted in his memorandum.